Russian ballet dancer
Alla Sizova
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Born
| 22 September 1939
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Died
| 23 November 2014
(2014-11-23)
(aged 75)
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Occupation
| Ballerina
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Spouse
| Mikhail Serebrennikov
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Career
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Former groups
| Kirov Ballet
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Alla Sizova
(22 September 1939 ? 23 November 2014) was a Russian
ballet dancer
, best known for her work with the
Kirov Ballet
. She was one of the four superstar ballerinas of the Soviet Union along with
Natalia Makarova
,
Alla Osipenko
and
Irina Kolpakova
, as well as the preferred dance partner of
Rudolf Nureyev
before his defection.
[1]
Biography
[
edit
]
Alla Ivanovna Sizova was born in Moscow on 22 September 1939 to Ivan and Ekaterina Sizov. The family moved to Leningrad shortly after her birth. During the Second World War, she was evacuated to the Urals with her mother and sister, while her father remained in Leningrad.
[2]
After the war, Sizova studied at the
Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet
, where she was taught by Natalia Kamkova.
[2]
Among her classmates was Rudolf Nureyev, with whom she performed the
Le Corsaire
duet in a school graduation film, which attracted the attention of the
Kirov Ballet
. The two were recruited by the Kirov directly as soloists.
[1]
Despite the immense chemistry on-stage between Sizova and Nureyev which manifested itself in their very successful partnership for the Kirov Ballet, temperamentally they were ill-suited to each other. They were forced to share an apartment but brought in their families to live with them and act as a buffer.
[1]
Following Nureyev's defection in 1961 during a tour in London, Sizova's family was closely questioned by the KGB, resulting in her mother's mental breakdown. Upon her return to the USSR, Sizova refused to condemn his actions, although she questioned why he would leave to perform in foreign ballets she considered inferior.
[1]
In the early 1970s, Sizova married Mikhail Serebrennikov, a television producer. They had a son, Ilya, born 1974.
[3]
Following her husband's death in 1980, Sizova moved to the United States. Sizova's son died in 2004, whereupon she returned to Russia where she led a reclusive life. In the late 2000s, she developed
Alzheimer's disease
. She died of cancer in St. Petersburg on 23 November 2014.
[3]
Career
[
edit
]
Sizova joined the Kirov Ballet as soloist in 1958 and became principal shortly after. Her first full part at the Kirov was as Masha in
The Nutcracker
.
[2]
Between 1958 and 1961, she performed fourteen major roles. She starred in
The Sleeping Beauty
and
Giselle
.
[4]
The Kirov recognised her talent of musicality and vulnerability, and gave her the leading part in
Igor Belsky
's balletic setting of
Shostakovich
's
Leningrad Symphony
.
[1]
Sizova's extraordinary high jumps and technical skills led Leningrad critics to call her
Flying Sizova
.
[3]
After Nureyev's departure, Sizova continued her career with a new partner,
Yuri Soloviev
, with whom she performed roles of great sensitivity and demonstrated the highest achievement of the Kirov's training.
[1]
Between 1964 and 1966, Sizova required extensive treatment for spinal injuries caused by the landings from her high jumps.
[2]
In the 1970s, her tours with the Kirov in London were widely anticipated and acclaimed.
[1]
Sizova's final appearance on-stage was in 1988 in
Chopiniana
. She then taught for three years at the Vaganov school.
[4]
From 1991, Sizova taught at the
Kirov Academy of Ballet
in Washington, with her ex-Kirov colleague Oleg Vinogradov.
[5]
Acclaim
[
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]
Amongst other roles, Sizova received great acclaim as
Princess Aurora
in the 1964 Kirov production
Tchaikovsky
's
The Sleeping Beauty
opposite
Yuri Soloviev
.
[3]
[6]
Nureyev is rumoured to have said in his later years that Sizova was the only thing that could conceivably entice him back to the Soviet Union.
Sizova was awarded the Soviet Union's highest artistic honour, the
People's Artist of the USSR
in 1983.
[1]
See also
[
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]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
"Alla Sizova - obituary"
.
The Daily Telegraph
. January 4, 2015
. Retrieved
July 8,
2019
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Cruickshank, Juliet (December 15, 2014).
"Alla Sizova obituary"
.
The Guardian
. Retrieved
July 8,
2019
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Sulcas, Roslyn
(December 8, 2014). "Alla Sizova, a Star Ballerina With the Kirov, Dies at 75".
The New York Times
. p. B19.
- ^
a
b
Shepherd, Melinda (January 22, 2015).
"Alla Ivanovna Sizova"
.
Encyclopædia Britannica
. Retrieved
July 8,
2019
.
- ^
Kourlas, Gia (July 7, 2009).
"Hee Seo: The American Ballet Theatre corps member makes her debut in Romeo and Juliet"
.
Time Out New York
. Retrieved
July 8,
2019
.
- ^
Eugene Register-Guard
.
"Premiere Successful"
. 6 August 1964, p. 5B. Retrieved on 19 May 2013.
External links
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National
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